RU2848154C2 - Method for determining ultrasound dose parameters, electronic device and data carrier for a computer - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: dosing.

SUBSTANCE: invention can be used to determine the parameters of the ultrasound dose. The essence of the invention is that the actual information about the distribution of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal area is determined in accordance with the target ultrasound transducer, and in the case where the actual information about the distribution of absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region corresponds to a predetermined condition, the parameters of the ultrasonic dose are determined in accordance with the actual information about the distribution of absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region and information about the target object.

EFFECT: ensuring the possibility of obtaining accurate results for determining the parameters of the ultrasound dose.

7 cl, 8 dwg

Description

Field of technology to which the present disclosure pertains

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the technical field of ultrasound and, in particular, to a method for determining ultrasound dose parameters, an electronic device and a data carrier for a computer.

Prior art of the present disclosure

[0002] Ultrasound therapy technology has attracted increasing attention in various fields of modern life, such as scientific research, the development of medical equipment, clinical practice and health policy. With the rapid growth of ultrasound therapy technology, more than 2,800 hospitals in China have already adopted ultrasound therapy technology, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the United States has approved the use of ultrasound therapy technology for the treatment of prostate cancer, breast cancer, bone cancer, uterine fibroids, Parkinson's disease and essential tremor, and ultrasound therapy technology has been exported to more than 30 countries, with a total number of treated patients reaching more than 3,000,000. Ultrasound therapy technology is not just a new way to treat malignant tumors or benign tumors, but has gradually developed into a new direction and a new industry for the treatment of numerous non-tumor diseases.

[0003] In high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) therapy technology, effective preoperative ultrasound dose estimation and dose exposure to the patient's body are the key to improving the safety and therapeutic effect of focused ultrasound, but the ultrasound dose exposure in the process of clinical focused ultrasound therapy mainly depends on the experience of physicians, which increases the difficulty of learning and mastering the practice of focused ultrasound therapy for new operators, particularly for the treatment of some special cases.

Brief Description of the Present Disclosure

[0004] In view of the above-mentioned deficiencies in the prior art, the present disclosure provides a method for determining ultrasound dose parameters, an electronic device, and a data carrier for a computer.

[0005] According to a first aspect of embodiments of the present disclosure, a method for determining ultrasound dose parameters is provided, comprising the following steps:

determining the actual information about the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal area in accordance with the target ultrasound transducer; and

in the case where the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal area meets the predetermined condition, determining the ultrasound dose parameters in accordance with the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal area and information on the target object.

[0006] According to some embodiments, determining actual information about the distribution of absorbed ultrasound energy in a focal region in accordance with a target ultrasound transducer includes the following steps:

obtaining B-mode ultrasound images of the target object in accordance with the target ultrasound transducer; and

determination of actual information about the distribution of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal area in accordance with B-mode ultrasound images.

[0007] According to some embodiments, the B-mode ultrasound images include a B-mode ultrasound image before the ultrasound exposure and a B-mode ultrasound image after the ultrasound exposure, and determining actual information about the distribution of absorbed ultrasound energy in a focal region in accordance with the B-mode ultrasound images includes the following steps:

calculating the offset between the B-mode ultrasound image before the ultrasound exposure and the B-mode ultrasound image after the ultrasound exposure using a predetermined block matching algorithm; and

determining the actual information about the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region in accordance with the offset and the previously obtained corresponding relationship between the offsets and the information about the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region.

[0008] According to some embodiments, determining ultrasound dose parameters in accordance with actual information about the distribution of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region and information about the target object includes the following steps:

determining information about the acoustic characteristics of the tissue of the target object in accordance with the actual information about the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region and information about the target object; and

determination of ultrasound dose parameters in accordance with information on the acoustic characteristics of the tissue.

[0009] According to some embodiments, the information about the acoustic characteristics of the tissue includes acoustic pressure, ultrasound intensity, ultrasound propagation velocity, acoustic attenuation, acoustic impedance, acoustic field distribution information, and energy absorption information.

[0010] According to some embodiments, after determining the actual information about the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region in accordance with the target ultrasound transducer, the method further comprises the step of:

determining reference information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region corresponding to the target ultrasonic transducer according to a previously obtained corresponding relationship between the output power of the ultrasonic transducers and the reference information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region and the output power of the target ultrasonic transducer; and

the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region corresponding to the predetermined condition includes: the difference between the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region and the reference information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region, which is less than the predetermined threshold value.

[0011] According to some embodiments, the method further comprises the step of:

in the case where the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region does not meet the predetermined condition, the target ultrasonic transducer is re-determined from a plurality of transducers differing in output power until the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region, determined in accordance with the re-determined target ultrasonic transducer, meets the predetermined condition.

[0012] According to some embodiments, the ultrasound dose parameters include an exposure time parameter, an exposure mode parameter, and an exposure position parameter.

[0013] According to a second aspect of the embodiments of the present disclosure, there is further provided an electronic device including:

one or more processors; and

a storage device that stores one or more programs;

one or more programs, when executed on one or more processors, cause one or more processors to implement the above-described method for determining ultrasound dose parameters.

[0014] According to a third aspect of the embodiments of the present disclosure, a data carrier for a computer is further provided, on which a computer program is stored, which, when executed, implements the above-described method for determining ultrasound dose parameters.

[0015] Due to the ability of attenuated focused ultrasound exposure, focused ultrasound can be used for pre-exposure to a plurality of target organs with clinical diseases to determine the distribution information of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region, and when using HIFU therapy to obtain the ability of enhanced ultrasound exposure, the obtained distribution information of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region becomes closer to the actual exposure process. The method for determining the ultrasound dose parameters proposed in the present disclosure is equivalent to performing a pre-operative assessment based on the actual distribution information of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region, and it can ensure obtaining accurate results of determining the ultrasound dose parameters.

[0016] Since it is necessary to depend on human experience or to perform real-time monitoring of whether a target object has coagulation necrosis, the method for determining the ultrasound dose parameters proposed in the present disclosure provides a quantitative assessment of the effect of focused energy by determining the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region when using a target ultrasound transducer, and can directly determine the ultrasound dose parameters according to the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region and the information on the target object in a case where the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region meets a predetermined condition, which contributes to improving the safety and effectiveness of the ultrasound dose effect in the HIFU therapy technology, reducing the complexity of using the HIFU therapy technology, and shortening the training and application time of the HIFU therapy technology.

Brief description of the figures

[0017] Fig. 1 is a first flow chart illustrating a method for determining ultrasound dose parameters in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0018] Fig. 2 is a second flow chart illustrating a method for determining ultrasound dose parameters in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0019] Fig. 3 is a third flow chart illustrating a method for determining ultrasound dose parameters in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0020] Fig. 4 is a fourth flow chart illustrating a method for determining ultrasound dose parameters in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0021] Fig. 5 is a fifth flow chart illustrating a method for determining ultrasound dose parameters in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0022] Fig. 6 is a block diagram of a system for determining ultrasound dose parameters in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0023] Fig. 7 is a flow chart illustrating the selection of a converter according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0024] Fig. 8 is a simplified diagram illustrating a flow chart of a method for determining ultrasound dose parameters in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure.

Detailed description of embodiments

[0025] Exemplary embodiments will be described in more detail below with reference to the figures, but the exemplary embodiments may be embodied in various forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments described herein. Rather, the embodiments are provided to make the present disclosure comprehensive and complete, and they are intended to enable those of ordinary skill in the art to fully understand the scope of the present disclosure.

[0026] The term "and/or" as used herein includes any and all combinations of one or more associated listed items.

[0027] The terms used herein are used only to describe particular embodiments and are not intended to limit the present disclosure. The singular used herein is also considered to include the plural, except where the context clearly indicates otherwise. It should also be understood that the term(s) "include" and/or "made of" used herein indicate the presence of the described features, systems, steps, operations, elements and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, systems, steps, operations, elements, components and/or combinations thereof.

[0028] The embodiments described herein may be described with reference to plans and/or cross-sectional views using idealized simplified diagrams of the present disclosure. Accordingly, the exemplary figures may be modified in accordance with manufacturing technologies and/or tolerances. Therefore, the embodiments are not limited to those shown in the attached figures, but also include configuration modifications obtained according to the manufacturing process. Accordingly, the regions shown in the figures are illustrative, and the shapes of the regions shown in the figures illustrate specific shapes of the regions of the elements, but are not intended to impose any limitations.

[0029] Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the meanings commonly understood by those of ordinary skill in the art. It should also be understood that terms, in particular those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning consistent with the meaning in the context of the relevant technology and prior art of this disclosure, and should not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly defined herein.

[0030] Currently, in clinical HIFU therapy, ultrasound dose assessment and dose delivery are usually performed based on the experience of medical personnel, which increases the difficulty of training and mastering focused ultrasound treatment for new operators, particularly for the treatment of certain special cases. When assessment and control by medical personnel are insufficiently accurate, excessive ultrasound dose causes significant side effects in patients and affects the safety and therapeutic effect of therapy.

[0031] Another common method for estimating the ultrasound dose and the effect of this dose is to monitor the presence of coagulative necrosis in the target object in real time and to stop the ultrasound exposure after it is determined that coagulative necrosis has occurred in the target object, or to increase the ultrasound dose if it is not determined that coagulative necrosis has occurred in the target object. For example, the occurrence of coagulative necrosis can be monitored using B-mode ultrasound, and a change in the gray scale mode in the target area (i.e., the appearance of a massive hyperechoic area) is taken as a criterion for determining the occurrence of coagulative necrosis in tissue. Therefore, it is impossible to determine that coagulative necrosis has occurred if there is no change in the gray scale mode in the target area. However, the occurrence of coagulative necrosis does not necessarily cause a massive hyperechoic area. If the ultrasound dose is increased when coagulative necrosis occurs in the treatment area, but a massive hyperechoic area does not appear during imaging, the safety of HIFU clinical treatment may be questionable. In addition to B-mode ultrasound guidance, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can be used for temperature monitoring to detect the formation of coagulative necrosis. MRI imaging time is approximately 3 seconds, but HIFU requires approximately 0.5 seconds to develop coagulative necrosis. Therefore, MRI cannot effectively achieve real-time monitoring, and the temperature value or calculated thermal dose cannot sufficiently demonstrate the occurrence of coagulative necrosis. Therefore, the above method is not valid.

[0032] In summary, there are still many problems in estimating the ultrasound dose and the exposure to this dose in clinical application of HIFU therapy.

[0033] In connection with the above, according to embodiments of the present disclosure, it is proposed that the ultrasound dose can be determined based on information about the distribution of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region. Accordingly, as shown in Fig. 1, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a method for determining ultrasound dose parameters is proposed, which can include the following steps:

stage S1, determining the actual information about the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region in accordance with the target ultrasound transducer; and

stage S2, in the case where the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal area meets the predetermined condition, determining the ultrasound dose parameters in accordance with the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal area and information on the target object.

[0034] The ultrasonic transducer is the core device of the ultrasonic therapy apparatus, which converts one form of energy into another form of energy among the following energies: electrical energy, mechanical energy, and acoustic energy, and is also called an active transducer; the focal area is the target area of biological tissue where ultrasound is focused; and the target object can be a living organism or biological tissue. After determining the ultrasound dose parameters, the actual ultrasound dose can be adjusted according to the ultrasound dose parameters.

[0035] Due to the ability of attenuated focused ultrasound exposure, focused ultrasound can be used for pre-exposure to a plurality of target organs with clinical diseases to determine the distribution information of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region, and when using HIFU therapy to obtain the ability of enhanced ultrasound exposure, the obtained distribution information of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region becomes closer to the actual exposure process. The method for determining the ultrasound dose parameters proposed in the present disclosure is equivalent to performing a pre-operative assessment based on the actual distribution information of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region, and it can ensure obtaining accurate results of determining the ultrasound dose parameters.

[0036] Since it is necessary to depend on human experience or to perform real-time monitoring of whether a target object has coagulation necrosis, the method for determining the ultrasound dose parameters proposed in the present disclosure provides a quantitative assessment of the effect of focused energy by determining the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region when using a target ultrasound transducer, and can directly determine the ultrasound dose parameters in accordance with the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region and the information on the target object in the case where the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region meets a predetermined condition, which contributes to improving the safety and effectiveness of the ultrasound dose effect in the HIFU therapy technology, reduces the complexity of using the HIFU therapy technology, and shortens the training and application time of the HIFU therapy technology.

[0037] According to some embodiments, as shown in Fig. 2, determining actual information about the distribution of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region in accordance with the target ultrasound transducer (i.e., step S1) may include the following steps:

step S11, obtaining ultrasound images of the target object in B-mode in accordance with the target ultrasound transducer; and

stage S12, determining the actual information about the distribution of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal area in accordance with the B-mode ultrasound images.

[0038] The lower part of the target ultrasonic transducer is placed in a degassed water zone, and the target object is placed in the upper part of the target ultrasonic transducer. When the target transducer is operated, the target object is scanned using B-mode ultrasound to obtain B-mode ultrasonic images of the target object, and actual information about the distribution of the absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region can be determined according to the B-mode ultrasonic images of the target object. Specifically, the corresponding relationship between the displacements and the distribution information of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region can be learned in advance by an artificial intelligence algorithm, in particular machine learning, and when the ultrasound images of the target object are obtained in B-mode, the displacement due to the ultrasound effect is calculated according to the images, and the corresponding relationship is searched according to the calculated displacement, thereby determining the actual distribution information of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region of the target object.

[0039] Accordingly, according to some embodiments, the B-mode ultrasound images include a B-mode ultrasound image before the ultrasound exposure and a B-mode ultrasound image after the ultrasound exposure. As shown in Fig. 3, determining the actual information about the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region according to the B-mode ultrasound images (i.e., step S12) may include the following steps:

step S121, calculating the offset between the B-mode ultrasound image before the ultrasound exposure and the B-mode ultrasound image after the ultrasound exposure using a predetermined block matching algorithm; and

step S122, determining actual information about the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region in accordance with the offset and the previously obtained corresponding relationship between the offsets and the information about the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region.

[0040] The predefined block matching algorithm may be a two-dimensional block matching algorithm with a transition from a coarse to a fine search pattern. Of course, the predefined block matching algorithm may be any other block matching algorithm capable of calculating the offset between images.

[0041] The existing imaging technology is not capable of determining the actual information about the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy when acting on a diseased object, but with the ultrasound dose parameter determination method proposed according to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the offset between the B-mode ultrasound image before the ultrasound exposure and the B-mode ultrasound image after the ultrasound exposure is calculated using a predetermined block matching algorithm, and the actual information about the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region can be determined according to the offset and the pre-obtained corresponding relationship between the offsets and the information about the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region, which contributes to improving the safety and effectiveness of the ultrasound dose exposure in the HIFU therapy technology.

[0042] According to some embodiments, as shown in Fig. 4, determining the ultrasound dose parameters in accordance with the actual information about the distribution of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region and information about the target object (i.e., step S2) may include the following steps:

step S21, determining information on the acoustic characteristics of the tissue of the target object in accordance with the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region and the information on the target object; and

stage S22, determination of ultrasound dose parameters in accordance with information on the acoustic characteristics of the tissue.

[0043] According to some embodiments, the information about the acoustic characteristics of the tissue includes acoustic pressure, ultrasound intensity, ultrasound propagation velocity, acoustic attenuation, acoustic impedance, acoustic field distribution information, and energy absorption information.

[0044] In the case where the target object is a living organism, the information about the target object may include gender, body mass index (BMI or Quetelet index 2), and B-mode ultrasound dose tolerance index.

[0045] Having previously obtained a corresponding relationship between the output power of the ultrasonic transducers and the information about the reference distribution of the absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region, it is possible to create individual plans of ultrasonic exposure dosage for different target objects according to the corresponding relationship. Accordingly, according to some embodiments, as shown in Fig. 5, after determining the actual information about the distribution of the absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region in accordance with the target ultrasonic transducer (that is, step S1), the method may further include the following step: step S1', determining the information about the reference distribution of the absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region corresponding to the target ultrasonic transducer according to the previously obtained corresponding relationship between the output power of the ultrasonic transducers and the information about the reference distribution of the absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region and the output power of the target ultrasonic transducer.

[0046] Accordingly, the actual information about the reference distribution of the absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region corresponding to the predetermined condition (as described in step S2) may include: a difference between the actual information about the reference distribution of the absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region and the information about the reference distribution of the absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region that is less than a predetermined threshold value.

[0047] The current target transducer is selected from a plurality of transducers differing in output power in accordance with the actual state of the target object. For example, the current target transducer may be selected in accordance with information about the target object, the pattern and size of the painful lesion of the target object, and the like.

[0048] With regard to the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region determined when the selected target ultrasonic transducer acts on the target object, if the difference between the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region and the previously obtained reference information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region corresponding to the target ultrasonic transducer is small (that is, the difference between the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region and the reference information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region is less than a predetermined threshold), it can be considered that the currently selected target transducer is a transducer suitable for the target object, and a treatment plan can be made in accordance with the target ultrasonic transducer, that is, the ultrasound dose parameters can be determined in accordance with the information on the target object and the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region determined in accordance with the target ultrasonic transducer.

[0049] According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the range of output power supported by the transducers is relatively large, and one transducer is selected from a plurality of transducers differing in output power as a target transducer, and by adjusting the output power of the transducer for acting on biological tissues, information on the absorbed energy of ultrasonic waves differing in size and distribution can be obtained, that is, a corresponding relationship between the output power of the ultrasonic transducers and the information on the reference distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region. In addition, as described above, due to the ability of acting with attenuated focused ultrasound, focused ultrasound can be used for pre-exposure to a plurality of target organs with clinical diseases to determine the information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region, so that the method for determining the ultrasound dose parameters proposed according to embodiments of the present disclosure is equivalent to performing a pre-operative assessment based on the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region. In addition, it is further determined whether the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region meets the predetermined condition, which makes the whole process similar to a simulation verification experiment, so that accurate results of determining the ultrasound dose parameters can be obtained.

[0050] According to some embodiments, the method may further include the following step: in the case where the actual information about the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region does not correspond to the predetermined condition, the target ultrasound transducer is re-determined from a plurality of transducers that differ in output power until the actual information about the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region, determined in accordance with the re-determined target ultrasound transducer, does not correspond to the predetermined condition.

[0051] According to some embodiments, the ultrasound dose parameters include an exposure time parameter, an exposure mode parameter, and an exposure position parameter.

[0052] The action modes may include a point scanning mode and a linear scanning mode.

[0053] As shown in Fig. 6, which is a block diagram of a system for determining ultrasound dose parameters according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the system for determining ultrasound dose parameters may include a scanning module, an imaging module, a computing module, an evaluation module, a storage module, a determining module, a display module, and a generating module. In addition to the modules shown in Fig. 6, the system for determining ultrasound dose parameters may further include an ultrasound transducer excitation system, a HIFU control system, and a water purification system. The scanning module is configured to scan a target object and send information obtained by scanning to an imaging module connected to the scanning module, and the imaging module is configured to perform imaging in accordance with the information sent by the scanning module. The computing module is configured to obtain actual information on the distribution of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region by performing calculations according to B-mode ultrasound images generated by the imaging module. Specifically, the computing module calculates the offset between the B-mode ultrasound image before the ultrasound exposure and the B-mode ultrasound image after the ultrasound exposure using a two-dimensional block matching algorithm with a transition from a coarse to a fine search pattern, and then determines the actual information on the distribution of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region according to the calculated offset and a previously obtained corresponding relationship between the offsets and the information on the distribution of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region. The corresponding relationship can be obtained in advance using a deep learning algorithm. The evaluation module can send the actual information on the distribution of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region, obtained by the computing module, to the display module for display. The evaluation module is further configured to determine the ultrasound dose parameters in accordance with the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region obtained by the computing module and the information (which may include the patient's identification data and the patient's medical history) of the target object stored in the storage module, and to send the ultrasound dose parameters and the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region to the determining module as reference information for the medical personnel. The determining module can send the ultrasound dose parameters to the generating module, and the generating module is configured to adjust the actual exposure time parameter, the actual exposure mode parameter, and the actual exposure position parameter in accordance with the ultrasound dose parameters. In addition, the determining module can be connected to the scanning module to send a control instruction to the scanning module; and the ultrasonic transducer can have more than three technical characteristic parameters (for example, the element diameter, the radius of curvature, and the output power).

[0054] As shown in Fig. 7, which is a flow chart of a transducer selection algorithm according to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a corresponding relationship between the output power of the ultrasonic transducers and the reference information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region is obtained in advance, one transducer is selected from a plurality of transducers differing in output power, according to the actual condition of the patient, the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region, i.e. the amount of acoustic energy emitted by the ultrasonic transducer to the area affected by the disease is determined in accordance with the selected transducer, then it is determined whether the amount of acoustic energy emitted by the ultrasonic transducer to the area affected by the disease corresponds to a certain degree to the area affected by the disease itself, that is, it is determined whether the difference between the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal area and the reference information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal area determined according to the corresponding ratio is less than a predetermined threshold value, and if the difference is less than the predetermined threshold value, an appropriate treatment plan is drawn up in accordance with the currently selected transducer (that is, the ultrasound dose parameters are determined in accordance with the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal area and the information on the target object), and if the difference is not less than the predetermined threshold, another transducer is selected from a plurality of transducers differing in output power, until the difference between the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region corresponding to the re-selected transducer and the information about the reference distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region corresponding to the re-selected transducer will not become less than a pre-set threshold.

[0055] As shown in Fig. 8, in the method for determining the ultrasound dose parameters proposed according to the embodiments of the present disclosure, after the ultrasound exposure parameters are set according to the determined ultrasound dose parameters and parameters such as the actual exposure time, the actual exposure mode and the actual exposure position are adjusted, the offset between the B-mode ultrasound images can be continuously monitored during the treatment procedure to continuously compare the information about the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region in real time with the information about the reference absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region and continuously adjust the ultrasound exposure plan to further obtain the best ultrasound dose exposure plan.

[0056] According to the present disclosure, there is further provided an electronic device including:

one or more processors; and

a storage device that stores one or more programs;

one or more programs, when executed on one or more processors, cause one or more processors to implement the above-described method for determining ultrasound dose parameters.

[0057] According to the present disclosure, a data carrier for a computer is further provided, on which a computer program is stored, which, when executed, implements the method for determining ultrasound dose parameters, which is described above.

[0058] Currently, the following difficulties exist in the field of ultrasound dose assessment and its effects in the HIFU therapy procedure:

[0059] Firstly, different patients have great differences in the acoustic and thermal characteristics of human tissues and blood perfusion rates, and existing theoretical modeling generally uses fixed values of acoustic and thermal parameters, but experimental studies show that the characteristic parameters of tissues in the target area change during the formation of coagulative necrosis.

[0060] In view of the above difficulty, Garnier et al. measured the relationship between the ultrasound attenuation coefficients in different tissues and temperature changes, and such a relationship is closer to the experimental result than the simulation using a fixed attenuation coefficient.

[0061] Secondly, to create a simulation model, most of the existing nonlinear models of ultrasonic fields use the Khokhlov-Zabolotskaya-Kuznetsov (KZK) equation or the Westervelt equation or the Burgers equation, and although these models are accurate in many practical applications, these models are still limited to modeling guided beams and usually only consider one-way propagation in a homogeneous medium, and therefore they are not accurate enough in some cases.

[0062] Third, during clinical treatment using HIFU therapy technology, ultrasonic beams can pass through multiple tissue layers such as skin, fat and muscle, multiple tissue layers are uneven in thickness and have irregular boundaries, the intensity of the ultrasonic field can be reduced by the tissue layer in the path of the sound beam due to attenuation, and the effect of attenuation is more significant in nonlinear cases, and the highest frequency harmonic used in the HIFU therapy procedure is attenuated to a greater extent.

[0063] According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the above difficulty can be largely overcome by obtaining in advance a corresponding relationship between the output power of the ultrasonic transducers and information about the reference distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region.

[0064] Those of ordinary skill in the art may understand that the functional modules/blocks in all or some of the stages and devices in the method disclosed above may be implemented as software, firmware, hardware, or suitable combinations thereof. In the case of implementation as hardware, the division between the functional modules/blocks specified above does not necessarily correspond to the division into physical components; for example, one physical component may have several functions, or one function or stage may be performed by the joint operation of several physical components. Some or all of the physical components may be implemented as software executed by a processor, such as a central processing unit, a digital signal processor, or a microprocessor, or may be implemented as hardware, or may be implemented as an integrated circuit, such as an application-specific integrated circuit. Such software may be distributed on a machine-readable medium, which may be a computer storage medium (or non-volatile medium) and a communication medium (or volatile medium). As is well known to those of ordinary skill in the art, the term "computer storage medium" includes volatile/nonvolatile and removable/non-removable media used in any method or technology for storing information (e.g., computer-readable instructions, data structures, program modules and other data). Computer storage medium includes, but is not limited to, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory or other memory technologies, compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), digital versatile disk (DVD) or other optical disk memory, magnetic cassette, magnetic tape, magnetic disk or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be configured to store the necessary information and that can be accessed by a computer. Moreover, it is well known to those of ordinary skill in the art that the communication medium typically includes computer-readable program instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data in the form of a modulated data signal, such as a carrier wave or other transmission mechanism, and may include any information transmission medium.

[0065] The present disclosure discloses exemplary embodiments using specific terms, but the terms are merely used and should be interpreted only as having general illustrative meanings and not used for limiting purposes. Unless explicitly indicated otherwise, it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that features, characteristics, and/or elements described in connection with a particular embodiment can be used alone or in combination with features, characteristics, and/or elements described in connection with other embodiments. Therefore, those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that various changes in forms and details can be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure according to the appended claims.

Claims (21)

1. A method for determining ultrasound dose parameters, which includes the following stages: determination of actual information on the distribution of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal area in accordance with the target ultrasound transducer, which includes the following stages: obtaining B-mode ultrasound images of the target object in accordance with the target ultrasound transducer; and determining actual information about the distribution of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region in accordance with the B-mode ultrasound images; wherein the B-mode ultrasound images include a B-mode ultrasound image before the ultrasound exposure and a B-mode ultrasound image after the ultrasound exposure, and determining the actual information about the distribution of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region in accordance with the B-mode ultrasound images includes the following steps: calculating an offset between a B-mode ultrasound image before the ultrasound exposure and a B-mode ultrasound image after the ultrasound exposure using a predetermined block matching algorithm; and determining the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region in accordance with the offset and the previously obtained corresponding relationship between the offsets and the information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region; and in the case where the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal area meets the predetermined condition, the ultrasound dose parameters are determined in accordance with the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal area and information on the target object, which includes the following stages: determining information about the acoustic characteristics of the tissue of the target object in accordance with the actual information about the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region and information about the target object; and determination of ultrasound dose parameters in accordance with information on the acoustic characteristics of the tissue. 2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the information about the acoustic characteristics of the tissue includes acoustic pressure, ultrasound intensity, ultrasound propagation speed, acoustic attenuation, acoustic impedance, information about the distribution of the acoustic field and information about energy absorption. 3. The method according to any one of paragraphs 1-2, characterized in that the determination of actual information on the distribution of absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region in accordance with the target ultrasound transducer additionally includes the following stage: determining reference information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region corresponding to the target ultrasonic transducer according to a previously obtained corresponding relationship between the output power of the ultrasonic transducers and the reference information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region and the output power of the target ultrasonic transducer; and the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region corresponding to the predetermined condition includes the difference between the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region and the reference information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasound energy in the focal region, which is less than the predetermined threshold value. 4. The method according to paragraph 3, further comprising the step of: in the case where the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region does not meet the predetermined condition, the target ultrasonic transducer is re-determined from a plurality of transducers differing in output power until the actual information on the distribution of the absorbed ultrasonic energy in the focal region, determined in accordance with the re-determined target ultrasonic transducer, meets the predetermined condition. 5. The method according to any one of paragraphs 1-2, characterized in that the ultrasound dose parameters include the exposure time parameter, the exposure mode parameter, and the exposure position parameter. 6. An electronic device for determining the ultrasound dose, comprising: one or more processors; and a storage device that stores one or more programs; one or more programs, when executed on one or more processors, cause one or more processors to implement the above-described method for determining ultrasound dose parameters according to any of paragraphs 1-5. 7. A computer storage medium used to determine the ultrasound dose, on which a computer program is stored which, when executed, implements the method for determining the ultrasound dose parameters according to any of paragraphs 1-5.